Four Stages of Competence and the gym

There’s a lot of learning in the gym and you may not even be aware of it. I find the Four Stages of Competence model helpful in regard to moving better in the gym.

It works like this: there are four levels of competence when learning or developing a skill. The first stage is unconscious incompetence. That means you don’t know how to squat and you don’t even know it. You’re completely unaware of the deficit. This is many people who walk into the gym for the first time. 

The next stage is conscious incompetence. You don’t understand how to squat perfectly, but you’re aware of the lack of understanding. You know that you need coaching cues and eyes on your form to make sure it’s right.

Conscious competence is the third stage. If you’ve been training for a while you can probably relate to this stage. You understand how to squat well, but it requires brain power to do it. If you start thinking about work while squatting your form can get sloppy. You need to focus in order to do it well.

The final stage is unconscious competence. It’s second nature. You perform the skill without any thought or brain power. In the gym, this is a hard place to get to. You might get it on squats but not deadlifts or push ups. We’re all different here, but one thing make this stage possible for all of us: time and focus. 

You’ve got to put the time in and use our brains to learn and develop new skills. The end game for all of this is to become better movers, unconsciously. So that when we’re hiking or kayaking or playing tennis we move better, in safer and more powerful positions without immense focus. Focus in the gym so you can have fun in life outside the gym.

—Justin Miner